Development of Pharmacovigilance in Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: A training program, namely, “Training of Trainers, Pharmacovigilance Development of Pakistan” has started in DRAP by the experts from United States Pharmacopoeia (USP) with the aim to train the DRAP officers and focal persons from Shaukat Khanum Hospital, Lahore, Shifa International, Islamabad and Agha Khan University Hospital, Karachi to develop Pharmacovigilance Center in DRAP. The first target is to attain the full membership of WHO Pharmacovigilance (PV) Center at Upssala, Sweden. CEO, DRAP in his opening remarks welcomed Dr. SoulyPhanouvong and Dr. RachidaSoulaymani, international experts on PV and all participants from provincial Drug Control Units and Public Health Programs.

He apprised the participants that with the promulgation of DRAP Act in 2012, PV section was developed in Division of Pharmacy Services, which is evident that the DRAP accords highest priority to the access of highest quality, safety and efficacy of therapeutic goods at affordable prices. PV Section has developed PV guidelines and online reporting forms for health care professionals, patients/consumers and manufacturers/importers of therapeutic goods and PV Rules, 2018 are in the process of development to provide the legal cover. He further elaborated that Pakistan National Nealth Vision (2016-2025) also stresses need for establishment of PV Center at Federal level and collection points at provincial levels. He urged the participants to make best use of this opportunity of training from international experts such as Dr. SoulyPhanouvong and Dr. RachidaSoulaymani with massive experience in PV as they would be the resource persons in future to run the PV centers and train the resource persons at provincial levels.

Dr. SoulyPhanouvong, Dr. RachidaSoulaymani and Mr. Khalid Saeed Bukhari from USP expressed their and highlighted the importance of adverse event reporting to PV Center and how these reports would be analyzed and forwarded to the WHO PV Center at Upssala, Sweden. They emphasized that PV is a science and needs a lot of training to detect and assess the adverse events and this is only a humble beginning. Mr. Khalid Saeed while highlighting the PV importance mentioned that Punjab Institute of Cardiology and Tyno Cough Syrup would have been detected at earlier stages, if there would have established PV system. He appreciated the conducive environment provided by the CEO, DRAP.